Poker fans tuning into ESPN’s opening coverage of the 2026 World Series of Poker Main Event saw plenty of familiar faces from the ACR Poker tables.
ACR Poker Pro Alex Foxen emerged as one of the most prominent players in the first two episodes, which premiered on ESPN2 on July 21st and followed the tournament’s opening flights and Day 2 action.
Foxen received recurring airtime as he accumulated chips, pressured opponents and worked through several challenging decisions. His ACR Poker Pro patch was clearly visible throughout the coverage as ESPN followed his progress and made him part of the early Main Event storyline.
Foxen Makes the Right Call
One of Foxen’s most memorable televised hands came against Vinh Nguyen. Facing an all-in decision, Foxen took his time and listened closely as Nguyen talked through the hand. Foxen eventually made the correct call and added another sizable pot to his stack.
The sequence offered viewers a close look at the observation, patience and decision-making that have helped Foxen become one of the most accomplished tournament players of his generation.
Foxen officially joined the ACR Poker Pro team in May alongside Chance Kornuth and Chris Hunichen. He arrived at the Main Event following an outstanding summer that included a victory in the $10,000 Super Turbo Bounty No-Limit Hold’em event.
Foxen earned $594,246 for the win and collected his fourth WSOP bracelet.
Moneymaker Returns to ESPN
Foxen was not the only ACR Poker representative featured during ESPN’s opening episodes.
Team Pro Chris Moneymaker also appeared in the coverage, bringing the broadcast back to one of the most important moments in televised poker history.
Moneymaker’s 2003 Main Event victory became a defining chapter in ESPN’s poker coverage. His journey from a low-buy-in online qualifier to world champion introduced tournament poker to a much wider television audience and helped inspire a generation of players to enter the game.
More than two decades later, Moneymaker remains closely connected to both ESPN’s poker legacy and the growth of online poker.
With Foxen competing as one of the game’s current elite tournament players and Moneymaker representing the breakthrough era that helped transform poker, ACR Poker had a presence across two very different generations of the game.
More Main Event Coverage Ahead
The opening episodes were only the beginning of ESPN’s 2026 WSOP broadcast schedule.
The network’s multi-year agreement with the WSOP includes more than 100 hours of coverage, additional Main Event episodes and three nights of live final-table programming.
More Main Event action is scheduled to air on ESPN2 before the final table takes place from August 3rd through 5th across ESPN and ESPN2.
That gives poker fans more opportunities to follow the tournament’s biggest hands, personalities and storylines as the field moves closer to crowning its next Main Event champion.
Chase Big Action in the Dual Venoms
If you crave big action of your own, ACR Poker is the place to be. The Dual Mystery Bounty Venoms begin August 13th, with a $12 Million GTD No-Limit Hold’em event and a $3 Million GTD Pot-Limit Omaha event.
Both tournaments have a $2,650 buy-in, with top mystery bounties of $500,000 in the No-Limit Hold’em Venom and $250,000 in the Pot-Limit Omaha Venom.
Players can qualify through Venom Fever, which is awarding more than 1,500 guaranteed seats through Venom Madness, Direct and Mega Satellites, Survivor Flips and other qualifying paths.
With a record $15 million guaranteed across the two tournaments, some of the biggest online poker action of the summer is still ahead.